A medical biller is a professional whose primary responsibility is coding and billing patient invoices. This is either done for insurance companies or patients themselves. In large hospitals, this role has a designated office holder. But in smaller care facilities, doctors, senior nurses, or administrators sometimes perform this task besides their regular responsibilities.
Medical coding and billing go hand in hand. Often, these separate duties are performed by a single person. Medical coding is essentially converting a care provider's procedural and diagnostic notes into industry standards codes to make it easier to identify the services offered and billed. On the other hand, medical billing refers to the process of generating invoices and sending claims to the insurer. The insurer then pays the claims based on the codes.
Medical billing and coding is an in-demand job. The increased demand for care services, technological advances, and insurance health regulations have created a growing need for these professionals. In the U.S., for instance, demand is projected to grow by 8%. In India, it's even better; demand is roughly 40% and increasing year on year.
So if these statistics impress you, here is how to get a medical biller job
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A medical billing specialist handles insurance claims, payments, and invoices. In doing so, they act as a liaison between insurance companies and a care facility's medical office. Their day-to-day work entails preparing and sending invoices for payment, coding medical services, diagnoses, procedures, treatments, tracking payments, and following up with concerned parties on rejected claims and outstanding bills.
This resume effectively captures the applicant's career growth over time. During this time, their accomplishments are highlighted to show the value they bring to the new employer. Moreover, the applicant has a solid foundational degree in Health Administration supported by a variety of in-demand technical skills.
A resume summary has replaced objective statements. So include a resume summary in which you outline the most impressive achievements of your medical billing career. This allows for easy recall on the recruiter's part and also enables you to mention personal competencies that might not appear elsewhere on the resume.
Over 90% of recruiters use ATS to screen resumes, and roughly 75% of resumes don't make it past the screening stage. When writing your resume, ensure that you format it to be ATS readable. To beat the ATS, optimize industry keywords, utilize standard resume formats, spell out abbreviations, and include only relevant information.
A Medical Billing Manager is the overall leader of the medical billing department. This person's role revolves around developing and implementing policies and procedures that fine-tune operations in the billing department. This professional also manages revenue cycles and is the go-to person in the department on matters related to billing and coding.
This medical billing manager resume focuses on experience and skill set. The applicant's achievements are captured using metrics (numbers and percentages), making them easier to recall. A strong foundation in Health Management followed by an ABC certification completes a robust medical billing resume. The resume also showcases in-demand technical skills, e.g., Intuit QuickBooks.
90% of recruiters use LinkedIn to source talent. Over 30 million organizations globally have a LinkedIn profile. So, there is no doubt that LinkedIn is a powerful medium to widen your network and get yourself noticed by people who matter. Always include your LinkedIn profile link in the contacts section and ensure your LinkedIn account is updated.
The STAR acronym stands for "Situation, Task, Action, and Result." Hiring managers want to know whether your knowledge and skills will add value to their organization, hence their use of the STAR method. Likewise, apply this method's mode of thinking when describing your work experience by including information that addresses each item area: situation, task, action, and result.
Medical Coders are skilled professionals who translate medical reports into a universal code used by healthcare providers and insurers for billing purposes. As a medical coder, you're a crucial link between insurance companies and doctors, ensuring that procedures are being correctly billed. In recent years, there's been a surge in outsourcing coding jobs; despite this, highly proficient coders are still in demand stateside. When crafting your resume, remember it's an opportunity to showcase your attention to detail, knowledge in medical terminology, and your proficiency in ICD-10 codes, CPT, and HCPCS Level II coding.
Employers value certifications as they demonstrate your commitment and expertise in the field. On your resume, highlight any coding certifications you have like CPC, COC, CIC, or specialty coding certifications from AAPC or AHIMA.
Proficiency in EHR software is a must in this digital era. List any EHR software you're familiar with, like Epic or Cerner, under your skills section. This will emphasize your adaptability and familiarity with digital health platforms.
A medical coder is a healthcare information management professional. A medical coder is responsible for the data management and security of patient files. Medical coders use a system of alphanumeric codes to privately secure patient information and records. The medical coder will also facilitate billing patients and processing insurance claims in a confidential manner.
To get a job as a medical coder, a degree is not necessary but is recommended. A relevant degree in healthcare, healthcare administration, or something similar will make you a stronger candidate. You will want to obtain certification as a registered medical coder to land this job. In addition, relevant experience in billing or IT can catch a hiring manager's eye. A good candidate for this role will have impressive attention to detail and great data entry skills.
Most people who land a job as a medical coder have a certificate in medical coding. An accredited ICD-10-AM course educates you on the medical coding system and best practices. Once complete, this certificate is nationally recognised. Having this credential on your resume shows hiring managers you understand the foundational knowledge to be a successful medical coder.
Since medical coders are typically responsible for managing the billing process, it’s important to get experience with billing to heighten your chances of landing the role. Landing an entry level role as a billing assistant, and building a year or two of experience, will show the hiring manager you have hands-on experience with billing processes and expectations.
A medical builder is a professional responsible for organizing patient costs and billing patients correctly for services rendered. The medical biller is responsible for billing both patients and their insurance providers. They may also call patients to discuss bills and payment plans, enter and organize patient data, and record outstanding balances.
If you want to get a role as a medical biller, you’ll need some specific experience. An associate's degree in medical billing is satisfactory for this role. A hiring manager will be looking for someone with strong attention to detail, mathematical strengths, and previous experience in billing or finance. Having billing experience in the medical field will make your resume stand out to hiring managers.
Certifications are a great way to show your employer your skillset. To get hired as a medical biller, a RHIT (Registered Health Information technician) credential can help you stand out among other applicants. A RHIT certification shows advanced knowledge in billing and information systems that are specific to healthcare.
When hiring for a medical biller, hiring managers will be looking for someone with administrative and/or technical experience in the healthcare realm. Luckily, there are a variety of entry level roles that can give you this foundational experience. Highlighting experience as a medical administrative assistant, receptionist or information clerk shows you have hands-on experience in healthcare administration, which is valuable.
A medical coder is a healthcare information management professional. An entry level medical coder will work alongside tenured medical coders to ensure patient data is encrypted, secured, and organized. The job of the medical coder revolves around translating sensitive patient data into ambiguous codes for easy storage and simple retrieval.
To get a job as an entry level medical coder, a Bachelor’s degree in medical informational technology, computer science, or healthcare administration is ideal. Hiring managers will like to see any relevant research projects, internships, or externships you have completed alongside your education. A part-time job in a healthcare setting, such as a role as a medical billing assistant, can also help you land an entry level medical coder role.
Being that this is an entry level job, hiring managers will be looking to see if you were engaging in concepts relevant to the position throughout your undergraduate career. A great way to showcase your knowledge in the field is to detail research papers or projects you’ve completed in college. Any project you’ve completed in information technology is valuable, but particularly if the subject matter was specific to medical coding.
Certificates are a great way to enhance an entry level resume. Certifications like the CPC (Certified Professional Coder) and CMA (Certified Medical Auditor) show hiring managers you have specialized knowledge in the field of medical coding and are proficient in the subjects that will make you a great medical coder.
We spoke with hiring managers at leading medical billing companies like AdvancedMD, Cerner, and NextGen to find out what they look for in medical billing resumes. Based on their insights and our expertise in the industry, we've put together these top tips for creating a strong medical billing resume that will catch the attention of employers.
Make sure to showcase your medical billing certifications prominently on your resume. Hiring managers look for candidates with certifications like:
Include the full name of the certification, the issuing organization, and the year you earned it. If you have multiple certifications, consider creating a separate 'Certifications' section on your resume to draw attention to them.
A resume summary for a medical biller is optional, but it can be a strategic way to provide additional context about your experience and skills that may not be immediately apparent from the rest of your resume. If you're a career changer or have a lot of experience, a summary can help bridge the gap between your past and your desired medical billing role.
However, avoid using an objective statement, as it's outdated and focuses on what you want rather than what you can offer. Instead, use your summary to highlight your most relevant qualifications and experiences that align with the medical billing job you're targeting.
When writing the work experience section for a medical billing resume, it's crucial to showcase your relevant skills, accomplishments, and career progression. Hiring managers want to see how you've applied your expertise to drive results and contribute to your previous employers' success. Follow these tips to craft a compelling work experience section that sets you apart from other candidates.
The education section of your medical billing resume is a key part of showcasing your qualifications. It's important to highlight your relevant training and certifications to demonstrate your expertise. In this section, we'll cover the essential steps for crafting a compelling education section that will impress hiring managers.
The language you use in your medical biller resume matters. It may often be the difference between your application moving to the next stage or ending in the bin. The best way to ensure your resume looks professional is to use action verbs. Ideally, use these at the beginning of your sentences where you mention your experience and accomplishments.
Well-positioned action verbs ensure that your medical biller resume looks professional. They also grab the attention of hiring managers well beyond the 5-7 seconds. Indeed, research shows that, on average, recruiters and hiring managers skim through resumes in under 8 seconds. So make use of this time.
Here are strong action verbs to start you off.
For more related action verbs, visit Medical Action Verbs.
For a full list of effective resume action verbs, visit Resume Action Verbs.
Medical billing is a numbers job, so a strong math foundation is vital. Most medical billers start with an Associate's degree or a bachelor's degree in finance, accounting, or a related field. They are expected to have a solid understanding of EMRs and billing software. Hard skills are highly sought-after so mention skills like ICD/CPT Coding, and familiarity with insurance web portals, etcetera to demonstrate your knowledge.
Generally, target your hard skills to the position you're applying for. You can obtain these from the job description. Ultimately, aligning your skills to those the employer is looking for is key to being relevant and increasing your chances of being noticed.
Meanwhile, here are other hard skills you can include in your medical biller resume.
You can include the above skills in a dedicated Skills section on your resume, or weave them in your experience. Here's how you might create your dedicated skills section:
This word cloud highlights the important keywords that appear on Medical Billing job descriptions and resumes. The bigger the word, the more frequently it appears on job postings, and the more 'important' it is.
Thank you for the checklist! I realized I was making so many mistakes on my resume that I've now fixed. I'm much more confident in my resume now.
